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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. content — happy
  5. clip — to cut
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. bank — of a river
  8. firm — a company
  9. perch — the fish
  10. present — a gift
  11. clip — for paper
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. present — there
  14. firm — decided
  15. present — the time now
  16. firm — steady
  17. row — to paddle
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. row — a line
  20. clip — a video
  21. bank — for money
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. content — the amount
  24. content — videos and posts

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com